Layer Switches.....a player question. (1 Viewer)

[Dave Getson]

I'm curious...with more and more disks using the dual layer format, why can't the manufacturers come up with a player that can read ahead to see the layer switch and just make it seemless. Kinda like anti-skip does on Diskman's.

I'm not the most knowledgable person about this, but with all that dvd players can do now, why can't they make this happen?

 

[Adam Barratt]

This topic was covered in some detail in this thread.
As it relates to your question, simply adding more memory wouldn't make much difference. DVD specifications call for non-seamless layer changes, which result in the dumping of a DVD player's buffer memory when a layer change occurs. Using a faster transport reduces the time the player requires to re-buffer, but the layer switch won't be completely invisible.
Sony have been experimenting with seamless layer changes in their Superbit line. Although they don't technically meet DVD Video requirements because of this, they haven't caused any problems on any players that I know of. I wouldn't be surprised if more studios begin using seamless layer changes in the future.
Adam

 

[Sanjay Gupta]

I have owned botht he Sony S7000 and Sony S7700 DVD players and quite honestly I very rarely could spot the layer changes on any DVDs. This was even when I actually was looking to spot them. But since then I ahve changed to a couple of Pioneer players and now the Panasonic RP82, and the layer change is not only very evident but also quite annoying, specially with the Pioneer players the layer change was at times so bad that it seemed like the disc was stuck and/or as if the player was actually flipping side. Well that might be an exaggeration, but the Sony players really spoilt me forever as far as layer changes are concerned.
Coming to the real topic of this thread, I alwasy thought the layer change was a player specific issue. So how can the mastering process of the DVD, have any effect on the layer change? Please elaborate a bit.

Sanjay